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Sunday, 9 December 2012

Sepia Saturday: Overalls & Billboards

Each week Sepia Saturdayencourages bloggers to record their family history through photographs. This week's theme features a man in overalls in an advertising billboard. it immediately brought to mind my husband's father - John Robert Donaldson of South Shields, County Durham,

My father-in-law John Robert Donaldson came from South Shields, County
Durham and was proud of his Scottish roots, but vague on the detail, believing
his ancestors came from around Edinburgh.

Research began by tracing the
family back from South Shields, using birth, marriage and death certificates and
census information. I was delighted to establish the Scottish connection in the
1851 census where Robert Donaldson, mariner was listed as being born c.1801 in
Leith - this was a great bonus as often English census returns just say born
Scotland without specifying a parish. Another one of those typical family
history coincidences - Leith was the place where Robert's great great
granddaughter Gillian was then working.

John Robert with his youngest son Neil - my husband. No helmets worn in those days!!

Samuel's descendants included his
youngest son Robert, grandson Robert who went from South Leith to South Shields,
and his son another Robert who moved to Portsmouth - the linking factor the sea,
with family occupations as a merchant, master mariner, seaman, roper, ship's
carpenter, caulker and river policeman. The first John Robert Donaldson was born in 1856 and the name perpetuated down the generations, with the family occupation changing to that of painter and signwriter. Here are some examples of my father in law's work.

Painted just after the Second World War with son Ian who also went into the family business by the side. The story went that because of a shortage of paper, it was painted directly onto the board. Nowadays, amidst anti-smoking campaigns, this advert would be banned.

Another photograph with Ian standing beside his father's work in South Shields.The story went that the railway company who owned the wall eventually tried to paint over the advert, but the original paint kept showing through.

John Robert, in his overalls, taking a break from work!

Click here to find how other blogger's have depicted this week's theme.

How grand to be able to find his work and get a photo taken next to it. I took a photo of my father standing next to a painting his uncle had done that was hanging in a museum. Boy did the docents give me a hard time about that. I told them the painting was done by my great-uncle and I was going to take the photo no matter if they liked it or not.

It is so nice to have tangible proof of things actually made by your ancestors. These are fine examples! One would hope that the wall in South Shields will survive. The motor cycle picture is super. There is so much detail that even the make could be determined, possibly also via the plate.

What a fascinating post. My father was apprenticed to a signwriter back in the 1920s, but his dreams were shattered when the school authorities said he had left school to early and he was forced to return for a final term - and he lost the apprenticeship.

About Me

I have been interested in family history for years. It all began when I was allowed as a child to look through the old family photographs and memorabilia kept in a shoebox in the cupboard at my grandfather's house. That treat started me on a fascinating ancestral trail.